Bar Toma to be reborn as pizzeria

Bar Toma, Tony Mantuano's Italian restaurant in the Gold Coast just off Michigan Avenue, is closing July 6 for renovations.

When it reopens in August, Bar Toma, which now features pastas, roasted meats and other Italian main dishes, will be a pizzeria.

"At Bar Toma we have realized that people want our pizza, and we've been trying to do so many different things there, and we finally woke up and said, let's give people what they want, and they want pizza," Mantuano said.

He's adding a second woodburning oven and bringing the existing one out in the open. "We want you to smell the smoke, see the fire," he said.

The new menu will be smaller and focus on pizza, antipasti and sandwiches, he said. "People should think of this as a great pizzeria and a great bar, a bar that shows every sporting event on TV."

Mantuano said his analytics department has figured out that his clientele is mostly locals from the city and suburbs, and not tourists, a surprise to him, given the location close to Water Tower Place.

The restaurateur, who also is a partner in River Roast and Purple Pig, said that decisions regarding carryout had not been made, but he "assumes" it will be part of the mix.

Mantuano has been on a renovating kick lately, first with Spiaggia and now with Cafe Spiaggia, which is in the midst of a redo.